Suizen (吹禅) means “blowing meditation”. Until the 19th Century the shakuhachi functioned as a religious tool to the Japanese Zen Buddhist Komusō (monks of nothingness) of the Fuke sect. The pieces of the Honkyoku (本曲, "original pieces" played by those monks) in the recording are played in the version of Jin Nyodo (1892-1965). The first piece on the CD, Daiwagaku [track 1], “The Great Harmony of Music”, was composed by Jin Nyodo in 1941. It represents the cycle of the seasons, of human life, and of the day.

Murasaki Reibo [track 2] means “Murasaki Yearning for the Bell”. Murasaki (purple) refers to Murasakino (the Purple Field area in Kyoto). Reibo can also mean a spiritual quest; it is a common title in shakuhachi Honkyoku.

Choshi [track 3], “Unity of Heaven and Earth”, is often used as a warming-up piece, or a piece to get a feeling of the instrument, because of its brevity. Structurally it is related to Daiwagaku.

Banshiki [track 4], “pass over”, was traditionally used in a ceremony known as Kuyo no Kyoku (Memorial for the Dead). The opening section is a sad sigh, the middle section is an emotional cry in the higher register of the shakuhachi, and the final section expresses quiet resignation. 

Kokū [track 5], “Empty Sky”, Mukaiji [track 6], “Flute on a Misty Sea”, and Kyorei [track 8], “The bell of nothingness” are considered the “three classics” (Koten-Sankyoku), the three oldest pieces in the shakuhachi repertoire.

Tamuke [track 7], “Hands folded together”, is a requiem piece for the departed souls of the loved ones. It is a prayer for safe passage through life and death.

The CD is not a studio recording. Ambient noise (such as the sound of rain, wind, or a passing truck) was not suppressed, in accordance with the Wabi-sabi (侘寂) idea of simplicity and imperfection.